For a company that focuses on the use of battery power, the integration into fossil fuel dominated markets can be challenging.  In order to help with integration into new markets, Globe Group AB are developing job-essential accessories that are compatible with their tools and batteries. The purpose of  the work done in this thesis was to develop a concept for a tool lanyard with an integrated electrical cable that is compatible with Globe Group AB’s current line of power tools. During this project it was decided that the research and testing would be conducted and analyzed based off high altitude tree work done by arborists.    This thesis focuses on the evaluation of research and testing to aid in concept design. A large focus was laid on the implementation of physical testing into early research and development stages, in an attempt to increase the validity of design decisions. The project was carried out by doing preliminary research and testing in order to gain information and metrics that could be used in the concept and prototype design stages. The prototypes were tested and compared to data collected prior in the project, to make statements about the feasibility of the concept and it’s included features. The result of this project was a final concept that includes all features that were deemed necessary through research and testing, a physical prototype, and test data to offer proof of concept.

In general, tunnels are designed with an abundance of safety regarding structural integrity, however, there can be uncertainty related to structural performance after a fire event. The residual condition of a tunnel after a fire is dependent on fire intensity and duration. The goal of this study is to correlate visual and material characteristics of structural and non-structural components of tunnels with fire temperature and exposure time. This can be further related to the residual capacity of structural members in a tunnel, providing insight into safety and overall functionality. Experimental results show that the visual response of materials with heat exposure is variable and dependent on a number of factors. A wide range of materials were studied to establish a well-versed collection of data that may be used in a post-fire inspection. In addition, mechanical testing of three configurations of structural slabs exposed to different heating regimens was conducted. The influence of heat on a structural member may be complex, and was found to be minimal for the heating regimens and loading procedures applied. This work can serve as an aid for post-fire investigation by providing methods to estimate fire intensity and duration through visual observation and mechanical testing.

The split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) continues to be one of the most common methods of testing materials at medium rates of strain. Elevated rates of strain, such as those found in impact and explosive applications, have been shown to induce phenomena such as strain hardening and phase transitions that can significantly affect the strength of most materials [14]. Due to its relative simplicity and robustness, the SHPB remains one of the preferred platforms for evaluating mechanical properties of materials at rates of strain up to approximately 104 in/in-s (s-1). At the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD), research has been conducted in which a semiconductor laser diode has been used to measure the radial strain of a plastically deforming cylindrical test specimen in the SHPB. The SHPB consists of two long, slender cylindrical bars, denoted input and output bars, that "sandwich" a cylindrical test specimen. Utilizing a high-pressure gas gun, a third cylindrical steel bar, known as the striker bar, is fired at the input bar, causing a compressive stress wave to travel through the input bar to the input bar - test specimen interface. At this interface, a portion of the stress wave propagates through the test specimen while the remainder of the pulse reflects back through the input bar as a tensile stress wave. The non-reflected portion of the stress pulse transmits through the test specimen and into the output bar causing the specimen to deform both elastically and plastically. Strain gages mounted to the input and output pressure bars measure both the incident, transmitted and reflected pulses. Specimen stress can be calculated using the transmitted strain signal while specimen strain and strain rate can be computed using the reflected strain pulse. In order to measure the specimen strain directly, a 670-nm wavelength semiconductor laser diode was affixed to the SHPB such that a vertical line of light approximately 250 micrometer (µm) wide was generated across the diameter of the test specimen. A collector lens located aft of the specimen was positioned to collate the light not occluded by the diameter of the specimen and refocus the light to be collected by a 25 MHz photodetector. Thus, changes in specimen diameter due to the impact event would result in more light being occluded by the specimen and less spectral energy being collected by the photodetector. The light collected by the photodetector is then converted to a voltage output before being recorded by a digital storage oscilloscope. With a known voltage-to-diameter calibration relationship, medium strain rate compressive tests were conducted to compare the optically measured strain results with the data gathered with the existing strain gages. It was found that the optical measurement system provided increased bandwidth and greater resolution than the conventional strain gage instrumentation while generating strain and strain rate results within 6.7% of corresponding strain gage data. This increased bandwidth and resolution allows the identification of both the elastic and plastic behavior of the specimen. In addition, the loading and unloading of the specimen can be clearly seen in the optical strain signal. These phenomena are evident in the peak diameter and strain achieved by the specimen, data not previously available with strain gage instrumentation. The plastic modulus, the theoretical relationship between the stress and strain in the plastic regime, also exhibits a significant increase in magnitude due to this ability to measure peak rather than average strain. Finally, by ridding the experiment of the input bar strain gage, input bar dispersion and the electrical and mechanical errors associated with the input bar strain gage were nullified. These conclusions will be validated through the presentation of several sets of experimental data correlated to data gathered previously. / Master of Science

Sediment microbial fuel cell (SMFC) is a special type of microbial fuel cells that can be deployed in a natural water body for energy production and contaminant removal. This MS project aims to explore whether it will be viable to apply SMFCs for wastewater treatment. Experimental SMFCs were studied in several configurations and operational modes for organic removal, nitrate reduction, and energy recovery. When treating an artificial secondary effluent for nitrate removal, the SMFC could remove 44% of the nitrate, higher than that without electricity generation. The enhanced removal was attributed to the supply of electrons to nitrate reduction in the aqueous phase through oxidizing the organics in the sediment. The lack of a proper separator between the anode and the cathode led to the failure of the SMFC when treating an artificial raw wastewater. Ion exchange membranes were incorporated into the MFCs that were installed in a lab-scale open water pond (150 L in volume). Such a system achieved 100% COD removal and more than 75% removal of ammonium nitrogen. However, denitrification remained as a challenge because of a lack of anoxic zone. To reduce the cost of the cathode catalysts, a polymer-based carbon cloth was investigated and exhibited better performance than bare carbon cloth. The results of this MS project have demonstrated that SMFCs in the absence of a proper separator cannot be applied for wastewater treatment. A membrane-based MFC system integrated with open pond may function as a wastewater treatment system, though nitrogen removal efficiency must be improved. / Master of Science

The newest European high performance material testing reactor, the Jules Horowitz Reactor, is under construction at CEA Cadarache research center in France. The reactor will support existing and future nuclear reactor technologies, with the first criticality expected at the end of this decade. The current/reference CEA methodology for simulating the thermalhydraulic behavior of the reactor gives reliable results. The CATHARE2 code simulates the full reactor circuit with a simplified approach for the core. The results of this model are used as boundary conditions in a three-dimensional FLICA4 core simulation. However this procedure needs further improvement and simplification to shorten the computational requirements and give more accurate core level data. The reactor’s high performance (e.g. high neutron fluxes, high power densities) and its design (e.g. narrow flow channels in the core) render the reactor modeling challenging compared to more conventional designs. It is possible via thermal-hydraulic or solely hydraulic Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations to achieve a better insight of the flow and thermal aspects of the reactor’s performance. This approach is utilized to assess the initial modeling assumptions and to detect if more accurate modeling is necessary. There were no CFD thermal-hydraulic publications available on the JHR prior to the current PhD thesis project. The improvement process is split into five steps. In the first step, the state-of-the-art CEA methodology for thermal-hydraulic modeling of the reactor using the system code CATHARE2 and the core analysis code FLICA4 is described. In the second and third steps, a CFD thermal-hydraulic simulations of the reactor’s hot fuel element are undertaken with the code STAR-CCM+. Moreover, a conjugate heat transfer analysis is performed for the hot channel. The knowledge of the flow and temperature fields between different channels is important for performing safety analyses and for accurate modeling. In the fourth step, the flow field of the full reactor vessel is investigated by conducting CFD hydraulic simulations in order to identify the mass flow split between the 36 fuel elements and to describe the flow field in the upper and lower plenums. As a side study a thermal-hydraulic calculation, similar to those performed in previous steps is undertaken utilizing the outcome of the hydraulic calculation as an input. The final step culminates by producing an improved, more realistic, purely CATHARE2 based, JHR model, incorporating all the new knowledge acquired from the previous steps. The primary outcome of this four year PhD research project is the improved, more realistic, CATHARE2 model of the JHR with two approaches for the hot fuel element. Furthermore, the project has led to improved thermal-hydraulic knowledge of the complex reactor (including the hot fuel element), with the most prominent findings presented. / <p>QC 20161208</p> / DEMO-JHR

No description available.

Verfahren der digitalen Nahbereichsphotogrammetrie ermöglichen eine dreidimensionale Erfassung von Objekten und stellen damit interessante Lösungsansätze für Messaufgaben im Bautechnischen Mess- und Versuchswesen dar. Ihr Einsatz bietet bei einer Vielzahl baumechanischer Untersuchungen die Voraussetzung für eine kontinuierliche, zeitsynchrone Objektoberflächenerfassung bei kurz- und langzeitigen Belastungsversuchen im Labor und in situ. Die daraus resultierenden Möglichkeiten der kontinuierlichen Erfassung von Verformungs-, Riss- und Schädigungsentwicklungen an Objektoberflächen stellen für viele experimentelle Untersuchungen im Bauingenieurwesen eine signifikante Qualitätssteigerung dar, die mit klassischen Messtechniken – wie z. B. Dehnmessstreifen oder induktiven Wegaufnehmern – nur bedingt bzw. nicht realisiert werden kann. Um das Potential der digitalen Nahbereichsphotogrammetrie zur kontinuierlichen Erfassung der Verformungs-, Riss- und Schädigungsentwicklung an Objektoberflächen bei baumechanischen Untersuchungen erfassen zu können, wurden – aufbauend auf den bekannten Grundlagen und Lösungsansätzen – systematische Untersuchungen durchgeführt. Diese bildeten den Ausgangspunkt für den Einsatz photogrammetrischer Verfahren bei experimentellen Untersuchungen in den verschiedenen Teildisziplinen des Bauingenieurwesens, z. B. im Holz-, Massiv-, Mauerwerks-, Stahl- und Straßenbau. Die photogrammetrisch zu erfassenden Versuchsobjekte – einschließlich ihrer Veränderungen bei den Belastungsversuchen – waren dabei u. a. kleinformatige Prüfkörper und Baukonstruktionen aus den verschiedensten Materialien bzw. Verbundmaterialien. Bei den anwendungsorientierten Untersuchungen musste beachtet werden, dass aufgrund der z. T. sehr heterogenen Anforderungen und der zahlreichen Möglichkeiten, die beim Einsatz photogrammetrischer Verfahren denkbar waren, die Notwendigkeit der Auswahl und ggf. einer Weiter- bzw. Neuentwicklung geeigneter Systeme, effizienter Verfahren und optimaler Auswertealgorithmen der digitalen Nahbereichsphotogrammetrie bestand. In diesem Zusammenhang wurde mit der systematischen Zusammenstellung und Untersuchung relevanter Einflussgrößen begonnen. Diese waren oftmals durch die jeweiligen photogrammetrischen Messprozesse und Messaufgaben beeinflusst. Die Ergebnisse machen deutlich, dass die digitale Nahbereichsphotogrammetrie ein flexibel anwendbares Werkzeug für die Erfassung der Verformungs-, Riss- und Schädigungsentwicklung bei baumechanischen Untersuchungen darstellt. Spezielle Messaufgaben stellen im Bautechnischen Mess- und Versuchswesen oftmals sehr hohe Anforderungen an die Messgenauigkeit, die Robustheit und das Messvolumen. Sie erfordern optimierte Verfahren und führten im Zusammenhang mit der vorliegenden Arbeit zu einer Reihe von Lösungen, wie beispielsweise der 2.5D-Objekterfassung auf Basis der Dynamischen Projektiven Transformation oder der Objekterfassung mittels Spiegelphotogrammetrie. Im Hinblick auf die Objektsignalisierung wurde eine intensitätsbasierte Messmarke entwickelt. Diese ermöglicht besonders bei sehr hochgenauen Deformations- bzw. Dehnungsmessungen ein großes Genauigkeitspotential im Sub-Pixelbereich, das im 1/100 eines Pixels liegt. In Bezug auf die photogrammetrischen Auswerteprozesse wurden optimierte Bildzuordnungsverfahren implementiert, die beispielsweise eine Punkteinmessung von bis zu 60.000 Punkten pro Sekunde ermöglichen und eine Grundlage für die flächenhafte Rissanalyse darstellen. In Bezug auf die qualitative und quantitative Risserfassung wurden verschiedene Verfahren entwickelt. Diese ermöglichen z. B. die lastabhängige Erfassung der Rissposition und -breite in Messprofilen. In einem Messbereich von 100 mm x 100 mm konnten beispielsweise Verformungen mit einer Genauigkeit bis 1 µm und Rissbreiten ab 3 µm erfasst werden. Im Zusammenhang mit den zahlreichen anwendungsbezogenen Untersuchungen entstanden immer wieder Fragen hinsichtlich der Faktoren, die einen Einfluss auf den photogrammetrischen Messprozess im Bautechnischen Mess- und Versuchswesen ausüben. Aufgrund der zahlreichen Einflussgrößen, die als Steuer- bzw. Störgrößen eine mögliche Wirkung auf bauspezifische photogrammetrische Messprozesse ausüben können, wurde im Rahmen der vorliegenden Arbeit mit deren systematischer Zusammenstellung relevanter Einflussgrößen begonnen. Die Relevanz einzelner Einflussgrößen konnte durch Untersuchungen bereits bestätigt werden. Um eine ganzheitliche Bewertung aller relevanten Einflussgrößen aufgabenabhängig vornehmen zu können, wurde ein spezieller Versuchsstand entwickelt. Dieser ermöglicht eine vollautomatisierte systematische Untersuchung bauspezifischer photogrammetrischer Messprozesse unter definierten Versuchsbedingungen und dient dem systematischen Einsatz photogrammetrischer Verfahren im Bautechnischen Mess- und Versuchswesen hinsichtlich der Absicherung bestehender Messaufgaben, kann aber auch zu weiteren neuen und optimierten Messprozessen führen. / Methods of digital close range photogrammetry are a useful tool for the measurement of three-dimensional objects in civil engineering material testing. They are generally suitable for automatic measurements with chronological synchronism of object-surfaces during short and long time load tests in laboratories and in situ. The methods provide an opportunity for measuring deformations, cracks and damages at the object-surfaces during load tests in civil engineering material testing. These possibilities can present new results for a lot of applications in civil engineering material testing. Displacement and deformation measurements still rely on wire strain gauges or inductive displacement transducers. However, they are not suitable for a large number of measurement points or the detection of cracks during load tests. First of all, a number of systematic investigations was conducted. This was necessary to identify capable methods of the digital photogrammetry for the measuring of deformations, cracks and damages at object-surfaces during load tests in civil engineering material testing. These investigations laid the foundation for practical measurements during short and long time load tests of samples and constructions from different parts of the civil engineering (e.g. timber construction, solid structure, stell and road construction). The application-oriented research in civil engineering material testing demonstrates the wide range of demands on systems and methods of digital close range photogrammetry have to meet. Often the methods and systems of digital close range photogrammetry had to be modified or developed. In this context the systematic analysis of relevant determining factors was started.The results demonstrate that the methods and systems of digital close range photogrammetry are a suitable and flexible tool for the measurement of deformations, cracks and damages at the object-surfaces in civil engineering material testing. In addition, the special experiments in civil engineering material testing demonstrate the high requirements laid upon methods and systems of the digital closed range photogrammetry, for instance regarding with the measurement resolution/range and robustness processes. This was the motivation to optimize and to develop methods and systems for the special measurement tasks in civil engineering material testing, for instance a 2.5D measurement technique based on the Dynamic Projective Transformation (DPT) or the use of mirrors. Also a special measurement target was developed. This type of measurement target modifies intensities and is ideal for high deformation measurements (1/100 pixel). The large number of points in conjunction with area-based measurements require time-optimized methods for the analysis process. The modified and developed methods/programs enable fast analysis-processes, e.g. in conjunction with point-matching process 60.000 points per second.The developed crack-detection-methods allow area- and profile-based to analyze the load-dependent position and width of cracks, e.g. cracks &amp;gt; 3 µm (100 mm x 100 mm). A main target of this work was to compile all relevant determining factors regarding the application of the digital close range photogrammetry during load tests in civil engineering material testing. To a large extent, this target was reached. However, the compilation of all relevant determining factors requires a special experimental set-up. This experimental set-up was developed. In the future, it may enable the automatic research of all significant determining factors. The results can be used to qualify or optimize the established methods and processes. Also it's possible that the results generates new measurement processes.

Body mounted germanium substrate solar cell arrays form the faces of many small satellite designs to provide the primary power source on orbit. High efficiency solar cells are made affordable for university satellite programs as triangular devices trimmed from wafer scale solar cells. The smaller cells allow array designs to pack tightly around antenna mounts and payload instruments, giving the board design flexibility. One objective of this work is to investigate the reliability of solar cells attached to FR-4 printed circuit boards. FR-4 circuit boards have significantly higher thermal expansion coefficients and lower thermal conductivities than germanium. This thermal expansion coefficient mismatch between the FR-4 board and the components causes concern for the power system in terms of failures seen by the solar cells. These failures are most likely to occur with a longer orbital lifetime and an extended exposure to harsh environments. This work compares various methods of attaching solar cells to printed circuit boards, using solder paste alone and with a silicone adhesive, and considering the application of these adhesives by comparing the solder joints when printed by screen versus a stencil. An environmental test plan was used to compare the survivability and performance of the solar arrays.

No description available.

No description available.